


Queerbaiting

by SaintOfAthena



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Boys In Love, Dorks in Love, Fluff, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Light Angst, Love Confessions, M/M, Sweet and understanding Ushijima, Tendou rants about his ships never sailing, venting
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-20
Updated: 2020-05-20
Packaged: 2021-03-03 04:49:21
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,113
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24289201
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SaintOfAthena/pseuds/SaintOfAthena
Summary: “So that means you like me? Right?”“I’m your boyfriend.”“Just to make sure.”“I do like you. A lot.”“Like a lot lot?” He reiterates.“Like a whole lot. As much as those characters loved each other.”“The canon or the Satori gay delusions version?”“Aren’t those the same? You were able to see that I liked you so you must be really good at guessing things. I suppose.”
Relationships: Tendou Satori/Ushijima Wakatoshi
Comments: 6
Kudos: 153





	Queerbaiting

**Author's Note:**

> Today is Tendou's b-day so of course I'd write something for him. These Haikyuu boys be living rent free in my mind I swear !!!!

As a fan of manga, Satori Tendou is used to being frustrated. At this point, one would even call it a personality trait of his and rightfully so. However, there is a limit to everything, and as he’s lying on his bed and glaring at the last page of his manga he realizes that he is way past said limit. Ten billion percent past it to be precise. As a flaming homosexual (he likes to think of himself as one) he was gifted with a particularity acute gay-dar which never failed him. A new member joining the team had a one in five chance of being straight ,taking into account the environment of course.  
To put it bluntly Satori simply never missed when it came to real life and neither did he miss when it came to anime or manga characters. And today as any other day, he was absolutely (but not canonically) right.  
Tendou felt like the world was gaslighting him and the feeling of helplessness slowly drove him to madness. He needed to rant against such injustice and blatant homophobia. Of course the two characters not ending together (as they should have) could only be explained by an intense hate for gays such as himself. He closes the object of torture and contemplates letting it finish its life in a trash bin but no matter how hurt and insulted he feels he’d never disrespect the hard work of a Mangaka. Instead, he gets out of his bed in fury, puts his slippers on and exits the room, the manga still in hand, he needed proof after all.

What he likes the most about his boy/bestfriends is his patience. Tendou didn’t even need someone to understand or relate to his issues, he was never that hopeful, he just needed someone to listen and validate his feelings: that is were Ushijima comes in or rather when Tendou enters his room unannounced. 

“Toshi-kun.” I need you. He opens the door dramatically.  
The ace is on his bed, doing what looks like math, he lifts his eyes up and gives a small smile.

“Hello Satori.” He then gets up and puts his school supplies away, making some room for the redhead. The latter obviously doesn’t care since he ignores the reserved spot in silence and installs his self on the taller boy’s lap where he belongs. The manga is thrown on the bed with much more violence than intended but he doesn’t even care anymore.

“You look upset. What happened?” Ushijima asks., rubbing his back to comfort him.  
Tendou can’t help but swoon at how sweet he is; always treating him with care and showering him with affection. It’s not like Ushijima doesn’t know he’s upset about something relatively unimportant. He’s just that good of a person and an even better boyfriend. Tendou almost thinks of rescheduling his rant as the simple desire to cuddle takes control of his senses, but brushes the idea away .Years of frustration can no longer be contained. He’ll try being quiet tomorrow. 

He gets up swiftly, Ushijima is starring up at him in expectation. “Tell me what’s wrong.”

“I just finished my manga and I gotta admit the ending is very homophobic.”he begins.

Ushijima narrows his eyes. Sometimes his boyfriend’s personality is too much to handle.  
“What happened this time?” He asks.

“Two characters with great chemistry ,a very well written dynamic , a strong feeling of unconditional friendship, sexual tension and a solid rivalry that just ends up being border homo-romantic. Mix it all together and what do we get?” 

Ushijima opens his mouth to give an answer but no word comes out. It might be for the better, he thinks.

“Exactly.” Tendou signs in defeat “ You get nothing. THEY GAVE US NOTHING.” He almost screeches.

“What about that BL you told me about?” Ushijima is still looking up at him as he walks in circles in the dorm, trying to contain his wrath.

“I dropped it.”

“Why? I thought you wanted romance.”

Tendou stops to stare at him in disbelief “I want GOOD romance Toshi. The kind of overwhelming relationships shonen is too cowardly to offer me.” He stand with his hands around his hips. “Why can’t the gays get anything?"

“What was wrong with the BL?” Ushijima’s efforts are well appreciated however his ignorance when it comes to Japanese “literature” is astounding. 

“It was not intense enough! It was cheesy and predictable and boring and stupid. Totally underwhelming. Plus the pining gets annoying at a certain point.” He rolls his eyes.

“You’re one to say that. I recall you got through a lot of trouble before asking me out.”

First of all ouch. Second of all how dare he?

“It’s your fault for not taking the hint.” He deadpans. “And I mean, it’s not like you ever though you could ask me out first?” Such audacity. 

“It might be that I didn’t even know I liked you in that way.”  
Ushijima can’t be real, he must be a manga character come to life. The kind of oblivious guy you love to hate in shoujo manga. Does that mean Satori is a girl? Of course not cause fuck gender roles. But honestly he’d rather be the main character of a shoujo than that of a yaoi. Shonen would be perfect too provided that he doesn’t end up with a female character. 

“When did you start liking me?” He sits cross-legged on the floor. 

Ushijima doesn’t hesitate “ I always loved having you around. The more you were there the more I felt attached to you.”

“So that means you like me? Right?”

“I’m your boyfriend.”

“Just to make sure.”

“I do like you. A lot.”

“Like a lot lot?” He reiterates.

“Like a whole lot. As much as those characters loved each other.”

“The canon or the Satori gay delusions version?” 

“Aren’t those the same? You were able to see that I liked you so you must be really good at guessing things. I suppose.”  
Ushijima is sort of like a pokemon, he evolves everyday. It makes Tendou smile.

“Do you think I’d look good with a bun?” Ushijima doesn’t speak that much usually so might as well make the most of the rare occasion.

“Were did that come from?”  
Tendou gets up, he’s bored with being on the floor “Quickly.” He stamps his foot in impatience. 

“I think you’d look good with a bun. Better than the bowl cut.”

“We don’t speak about the bowl cut in this house!” He points an accusing finger to his partner.

“My bad.”  
He sits down again, against the wall that time.

“Anyways that manga frustrated me. I mean the author could’ve given us a little hint, make it canon for the gays but subtle enough not to frustrate the homophobes. They’re not smart enough to notice things anyways.”  
“Why are you so invested in fictional characters love lives?”

He gets up from the spot he was sitting on and picks up his aimless wandering in the room.  
When he was a kid Satori Tendou thought something was wrong with him. He didn’t always know he was gay, it became crystal clear when he was in middle school and unfortunately for him anyone else could tell but hey that’s not the point. Creating a bond with a character is about their story resonating with one’s soul and connection often leads to projecting one’s own feelings and experience on said fictional characters. So far everything is normal.  
What he believes to have been his “Awakening” (as a reference to Claymore, a manga very close to his heart that never got the anime it deserved) was actually him projecting his own feeling and desires on characters. Anime and manga gave him countless deep and breathtakingly beautiful relationships between two male characters only to introduce a mediocre female love interests in the shape of a canon who’s sole purpose is to obliterate his ship and dream.  
Other boys on forums called him not so nice words when he addressed that issue, the girls on the other hand agreed with him but never for the good reasons so their opinion held no value at all. But what drained him the most was the eternal and unshakable need to explain his reasoning. To explain his feelings, his perceptions, his interpretation of the bond the characters shared whereas any second-rate and uninspired straight ship would get the world’s approval. He was fifteen when he realized that he was trapped in a world where heteronormativity, which had nothing to do with him as a person, has been imposed on him. It being the norm made him sick as it gave him yet another reason to think he wasn’t….normal and it hurt him. A lot. 

“I’m thankful ‘cause they made me realize I was gay. At first I thought I was projecting on them and I felt gross about it. Like I was trying to shove it down other people’s throat , you know? But now I’m realizing it’s not true. Some manga authors just can’t write romance for shit,” he shrugs. “They give us underwhelming stories and want us to consume them. This manga here is another example of this shit.” He points at it” And it’s crazy frustrating to be honest. I feel like I’m fourteen again and trying to convince myself that I’m not a creep and that my feelings are valid and I hate that it makes he feel that way.” 

He breathes.  
Venting sure does feel good.

“Come here.” Ushijima whispers, Tendou shuffles toward the bed and lets his body relaxe into the hug “I’m sorry you had to go through all this and I’m even more sorry you had to do it alone but it’s alright now.”

“I hate it when I look vulnerable.” His face is in the crook of Ushijima’s neck. 

“You’re perfect. Hey, maybe you should draw your own manga.”

“I can’t draw for shit.” He whines (But that idea doesn’t seem half bad.) 

“You could write a book then. You should be able to encapsulate the gay experience.” He laughs.

“I’ll stick to fan fiction and volleyball.”

“You write fan fiction? How come you never told me?”

“You never asked.”he mumbles.

“Me not asking never really stopped you.”

That’s true. 

“Do you wanna read some of the stuff I wrote?” Tendou beams.

“I’d be glad to.” 

Tendou leaps out of his lap “Oh I’m working on something right now. Today’s the birthday of a character I love and I wanted to write something for them. You can be my beta reader if you want!”

“What’s that?” Tendou tilts his head and smiles brightly, he’s been waiting for this exact moment his entire life. 

“Lemme explain. But first we need to get to my room.”

****

He spends the evening explaining his ships and head canons to his partner who just nods in admiration in front of his enthusiasm. Tens of excerpts are read out loud, others in sacred silence: fluff, smut, angst, you name it. 

“I think the way you analyse the characters and their feelings is remarquable. Any one can tell you really pay attention to the details. You’re talented.” The pride in the ace’s voice makes Tendou’s heart swell.

“I love you.” He says without a single though. Well, maybe he should’ve given it at least one thought cause he regrets the words once they’re gone.That was very stupid. Shit. Okay he’s single now.“I mean I like you a lot.” He tries to rectify his mistake "You know what? Let’s just forget I said anything. Oh shit, I-”

“I love you too.” 

“Huh?”

“I said I love you too.”

Steins gate level plot twist.

“Yeah I heard that but why though?”

“I could ask you the same thing.” Ushijima teases.

That’s some Marley arc Eren level character development. 

“Answer my question first.”

“For hundreds of reasons.”

“Like what?”

“Are you fishing for compliments? That’s not like you.” He smiles.

“I started a new anime yesterday I’m just channeling the personality of the main character, don’t mind me.”

“Oh okay.”

“I’m still waiting.”

“You…fascinate me.”

“Why?” His question is genuine.

“Because you’re fascinating?” He hesitates? 

For the first time in the evening, Tendou recognizes his boyfriend. It’s reassuring yet disappointing. 

“Oh my dear Toshi. I love you but you suck at romance.” The “suck” is emphasized. 

“Will you teach me then?”

“First of, I need to evaluate your skills.” Tendou crosses his arms and holds his head high, his mouth in a smirk.

“I suggest we practice kissing.”

Okay that was very smooth. Makes up for the lack of anything that lacks. 

“Good idea.”

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked it!
> 
> Follow me on Twitter: @KilluaMom 
> 
> Have a nice day!


End file.
